Job Description

We provide Scientific, Engineering, and Technical Assistance (SETA) support to a government research funding organization dedicated to investing in high-risk, high-payoff research programs to tackle some of the most difficult challenges of national security.

The successful candidate will support the government program manager by participating in or leading all activities in support of the Program lifecycle in the areas of program development, source selection, execution, closeout, and transition. The candidate will also be responsible for coordinating meetings, assessing performer technical progress, projecting performer outcomes, and ensuring that project management best practices are followed by performers, independent verification and validation (IV&V) entities, and within the government funding organization itself.

Responsibilities

• Analysis of emerging science and technology R&D opportunities through literature review; outreach to the research community; summarizing, analyzing, and visualizing data in spreadsheet and graphical forms
• Generating briefing materials and agency documents required for new program approval
• Program management at all stages over the program lifecycle including BAA drafting; feedback on proposals; interactions with proposers and performers; meeting organization and participation; transition partner and industry partner engagement
• Serve as a technical liaison between Performers, Government, Test and Evaluation team, and Transition partners
• Lead periodic performer assessments to analyze findings in coordination with the test and evaluation team, assess technical and schedule risks; develop management strategies; communicate findings to program manager
• Technical evaluations and guidance on reports, briefings, and other performer communications
• Presentation and report preparation
• Program administration, including development of technical analyses, identification of technology gaps, technical risk management, project cost estimation, technology transfer efforts, as well as supporting technical reviews
• Attending and organizing program reviews/site visits/field tests

The ideal candidate should possess technical research, development, and engineering experience in biomanufacturing, chemical deformulation, or other analytical methods of reverse engineering physical materials. Recent laboratory experience, especially in biomanufacturing or quality control/assurance of biomanufactured materials is ideal.

Requirements

• A master’s degree in chemical engineering, bioengineering, synthetic biology, or related fields with four plus (4+) years of work experience in one of these fields or a Doctorate degree with two plus (2+) years of work experience in one of these fields.
• At least two (2) years’ experience analyzing and characterizing molecular features from chemical or biological samples, completed within the last four (4) years.
• One (1) year experience supporting the management of a multi-disciplinary research and development (R&D) or Test and Evaluation (T&E) team.
• Two (2) years’ experience writing technical protocols, manuscripts, reports, and/or presentations for a range of consumers and audiences.

Desired Capabilities and Characteristics

• One (1) year of experience creating program plans, work breakdown structures, and milestone schedules.
• One (1) year experience in the Intelligence Community (IC) or associated with the Department of Defense, including experience with requirements, CONOPS, and transition.
• Two (2) years’ knowledge and experience in the biomanufacturing community to include academic, industry, and/or government.
• One (1) year experience working with or at national and/or uniformed service laboratories.
• One (1) year experience working or supporting a government research funding organization, DARPA or similar.
• One (1) year experience with modern machine learning/artificial intelligence models used in biology such as Alphafold, Evo, and/or RoseTTAFold.

\#CJ